Town Hall

Mika made sure everyone had some food and then looked out the window. It was snowing again. Harder. She put on her cloak (not jarlon's) and went outside with rope making paths to the warehouse and pasture, and then one to the library. She was tying the one from the library to the town hall railing when she heard..well more felt something. She turned and looked into the falling snow. She saw a figure. "Saron?" she whispered. She saw him walking towards her with his hand in his cloak and his head down. His steps while strong were..distracted. Her eyes widened 'no..not again' she thought 'please not again.' She tied the rope and jogged toward him. Her eyes searching for blood or a wound. "Saron" she said again her voice full of worry. She came within a few feet of him. "what happened, where are you hurt?" she asked worriedly

Ronan thought he heard a voice. He rubbed Rhea's shoulder "I'll be right back" he said gently. He knocked on the wall on the other side of the curtain. "You ok?" he asked through the curtain.

.................forest

I walked up to the village still letting the pup suckly my finger. I held my head low to keep the snow from prickeling my face. I then heard Mika. I looked up and smiled. My cheeks and tip of my nose rosey. "Hurt? I'm not hurt" I smiled and opened my cloak a bit more so she could look inside. I then looked up at her a little proud and smiled again. "Brrrr it's cold...are the goats in the warehouse?" I asked remembering the lactating female.

There was a light gasp as Kai's head whipped around to the voice. "ah-h" Kai's stammered, "Hai!....ermm Yes, I'm ok" she said in a shy voice, as her pale pupil-less teal/green eyes peeked through the slit in the curtain, her unusual fire red hair was in untamable spikes almost gravity defying.

Mika looked at him confused then looked in his cloak. She gasped slightly. "Pup.." she said quietly. "Where? How?" she asked as she looked at his little bundle. The pup barely blinked it's barely open eyes at her and then closed them again as it sucked on his pinkie. "Aww" Mika chuckled. "Hmm? Oh ya...Tyler moved them in two days ago." she said her eyes never leaving the pup.

Ronan nodded and saw her fiery red hair and green eyes through the slit. He smiled and pulled up a chair still on the other side of the curtain. "How are you feeling? You fainted earlier" he said kindly peeking through the slit in the curtain.

"Ah yes I did......but I'm fine now" she said with a blush of embarrassment through the curtain.

"Good" Ronan smiled "So..you heard my name..I don't think I ever had the pleasure of hearing yours" he said quietly

"Yes I'm sorry" she said sliding the curtain open with a delicate yet still strong looking, it had clearly been a several fights before. With a slight bow she said in a shy voice, "Wokai-Tomodashi...nice to meet you,....." she said in a very 'Japanese' accent, at his look Kia said, "But just call me Kai.....People have a hard time remember my name....so it's easier just to call me Kai" she finished with a innocent smile.

Ronan stood up as she opened the curtain. He bowed slightly in return. "Nice to meet you Kai. As I said I am Ronan..Ronan Dex. I am a merchant here. Once a wandering soul but.." he looked over at Rhea and smiled "That has since changed" he chuckled. "So..are you new here?" he asked

Kai smiled at Rhea then back to Ronan, "Well I am.....Happy for you" she said a small hint of sadness in her voice, but quickly changed the subject. "me new?.....well kind of, I've come and gone for a while, and for some reason, I keep ending up back here....now matter how hard I try" she said.

Ronan smiled slightly. He saw the disappointment in her eyes but he wanted the fact that he was attached to someone very special to be known right away. It was better that way. Ronan chuckled slightly "I think I know what you mean...sometimes something just seems to draw you back doesn't it?"

Malek woke up the next morning, his face in something soft, but it didn't feel like fur. He quickly opened his eyes and looked down at the pillow.
"Toboe? Toboe?!" He looked around, knowing something was wrong. Not right.
"Toboe!" He almost screamed like a child. He sat there against the wall, the pillow in his arms and his face in the pillow.
He was a grown man, but he felt like a 6 year old child again. His only dear, close friend was gone now. And now it was right to cry.

"Ya...."Kai said quietly, it pulled a rather painfully memory of Tark from Kai's mind, a single tear streaked down her face, "Oh great.....Please do excuse me" She said her voice almost breaking as she rushed out and through the door. Shiroi who was sleeping at the end of the bed where he had crashed from the night before of playing with the little red fox, jumped up. ~Kai!...where are you going?...~ he almost yelled casing after her. Kai sat down in a little huddle outside the door several feet away, Shiroi walked over and sat down beside her, ~You ok?....what happened?~ he asked no knowing what was going on. ~It's nothing...I just don't feel great right now~ She said, Shiroi cocked his head to the side. ~But normally when you don't feel good...I normally feel worse.....but I feel ok, I guess~ he said licking Kai's hand, Kai peeked out of her arms and petted His soft fur, then pulled him close. ~It's not that a feel bad that way....it's just I feel like crying, and I can't stop it even if I wanted to~ clucking Shiroi she started to sob as quietly as possible, so no one would hear she hoped.

He looked up from his own sobbing to hear someone walk/jog out of the room and out the door. He wiped his face with his sleeve and walked outside to see who it was.

Once out the door, he saw a young girl sitting there with her head in her folded arms, resting on her knees.
"Hey. Um *sniffle* I don't believe we have met." He tried to say through his own sadness.
"I am Malek. And th-" He stopped himself, remembering Toboe wasn't there next to him to be introduced to anyone. He let his head hang for a second and then slid down beside the girl.
"You alright?"

"Oh ummm hi" she tried to hid the fact that she was crying, but it didn't work of coarse, "I'm Kai...this is Shiroi" his head peeked from her knees and nodded then turning licked Kia's face. "Ya I'm ok....I think.....or.....al lest I will be, given some time" she said sadly tears still sliding from her pale green eyes down her face, some of her flaming red hair was soaked along the frame of her face.

"What's wrong?" He asked kindly, forgetting about what had upset him.

"Oh it's nothing.....it's just in general I think....just memories that hurt" another sob took over her as she shook.

"Ah I know what you mean." He put a gentle arm around her shoulders and gave her a small hug.
"I just lost my dear, close friend. My wolf, Toboe..." He trailed off slightly.

Kai froze when hugged, "Todays just a bad day" she said, why did she feel this way? "I'm sorry...." she said when Malek explained about his lose. after the hug Kai scooted away from him a little. "Please don't get any closer" she whispered not wanting to hurt anyone.

He nodded to her, understanding why she'd feel a bit...scared.
"I understand." He rested his arm on his bent knee and listened to the morning sounds.
"Would you like to go inside? I could make you something to eat if you'd like." He offered to her.

"Thank you....but no" she said in a blue funk. her eyes as pale as they were seamed to lose more color. "I'm ok" she whispered blankly.

"Ok. Well, if you need anything, I'd be glad to get it for you." He said in a friendly way. He leaned back against the wall and watched the sky go from milky white, to orange, to a light blue.

"Thank you....." "Tark I don't understand......where are you? where did you go?...where is my mother!" Kai started in hardly a whisper then to a yell. Kia jumped to her feet to Shiroi's surprise. with a gasp, she grasped her forehead for a moment, when with a unsteady hand ran through her wild hair. "I have to go....I have to fine her....." she said with urgency in her voice. she turned around. "Malek...I need you to give Mika a message for me please"....with resolve in her voice Kai said. "Tell her I've gone for a while....tell her please not to worry about me...she does" Kai's sorrowful face changed to something with meaning in it. she rushed inside and grabbed her small bag of belongings, tied it to her side then bowed, "It was nice meeting you, Malek...and hope we do so again someday....thank you for your help, say Hi to Rhea for me?" she asked with a smile. she quickly turned and with Shiroi casing after her disappeared as quickly as she had come.
------->gotta go for a while...see ya....>

He nodded and stood up, watching her go.
'That was...odd.' He thought. He sighed and walked inside, starting a fire. He rested beside it, leaning against the couch.
"I wish none of this had happened..." He said quietly.